The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1887-06-10
"Some go to church to laugh and talk
And some go there to take walk;
Some go there to sleep and nod,
meteorological Record for May, 1887.


Maximum temperature on the 4th, Sc. 50 90 degs
Minimum do. on the morning the 25th,. So 90 %
Mean temperature of the month.......Gi 80
Rainfall 2jl inches.
past 10 years, that of 1880, with mean of 67.5
degrees; The coolest May IN the same time was
that Of iSss, $3.50 degrees; The mean q tempera-
or 800 degrees below that of the past month.
While the temperature OF the month ranged
above the mean, its rain fall fell below. A drouth
which began to be injurious, prevailed from the
10th TO the 24th. Up to the 10th, As inches had
fallen only and before the cath the surface of
the ground had become very hard and garden
seeds failed to gegminate until the rains of the
last of the month, which continuing on through
the iirst days of the present month finally thor
oughly SOAKED the ground. The least rainfall for
May, in my record, was that of 1876, only 90 of
an inch; the most, that OF last year. 1886, when
there fell in this month, p inches, with mean
temperature more than degrees below that of
the past month. Mean rain for May 345 inches.
An item in the papers that Prof. Klein, of Hart
ford. Kentucky, had discovered in the N. w.
heavens the Star of Bethlehem has excited
very general attention. A notice of this wonder
ful star, stating what is known of it, may, per-
haps be generally interesting. On the evening of
the 18th of November, 1872 as the Danish astron-
omer and astrologer Tycho Brahe was return
ing home, gancing up TO the heavens he saw a
great strange star in region where no such star
belonged. Judge of his wonder suddenly to be-
hold in what with his intimate knowledge of the
heavens, he knew TO be a vacant space a great
Strange star, brighter than Venus herself. He
soon learned that others whose business had
kept NHtul tllN ut Hlbnt ohllOTS anu Hul
also noticed this wonder, but as he was the first
TO bring it to the notice of the learned it was
then called Tycho Brahe star, and his name will
be forever linked with it. The star appeared
larger and brighter than Venus, and as Venus is
often seen on a winters morning after sunrise, il
what told of this star is true, doubtless 1t could
be seen by day. However, it soon began to fade,
and In December of the same year II had paled to
the brightness of Jupiter. and year after its dis
covery 1t had become star of the fourth mag.
nitude, and In March, 1874, a year and a-fourth
after Its discovery, II disappeared from mortal
eyes, which, as yet, had not been armed with
the telescope, which was first directed to the
heavens about 45 years later But why call this
the star OF bethlehem, and why do VIC expect to
see 1t again about this time?
The old records show that in the years 1864 and
again m 9t5, in the same region of the heavens
where Tycho's star appeared, a most brilliant star
blazed out for while, and as suddenly disap-
peared. Now from 9i5 to 1864. is $40 years, and
from 1854 to l5I2 is 3)S years. Now this mean of
about 3l5 years twice repeated back from 9i5,
takes us down to the birth of Christ. That no
record of its appearance in 3l5 and $50 remains
for us, seems very probable chance when we re-
call the darkness of those troublesome times.
3l5 to l572 gives us 1857, the present year, and we
the heavens are not swept by the great telescopes
of the hedUeRiy watch towers in every land. The
place of its appearance Is between the cnnste,la-
tiOns Cepheus and Cassiopml which in the even
ing at this time of year, are seen in the N. West
heavens From the least point of light, only OBJ
servable by the most powerful telescope. II will
brighten out to its wonderful splendor. IL Prof.
He may have done so. but probabilities would
favor more powerful instruments on great obser-
NatlOns g. e. C.
Oakland School,